Conference photo's:

Welcome to the website of the 10th European Conference of the International Labour and Employment Relations Association (ILERA) which will take place in Amsterdam, 20-22 June 2013 at the historic Oudemanhuispoort building of the University of Amsterdam, located in the city centre. Under the general theme ‘Imagining new employment relations and new solidarities’, the organizing committee invites scholars, students and practitioners from across Europe and beyond to come to Amsterdam to discuss the past, present and future of employment and labour relations. This conference will offer a prestigious academic programme plus an attractive social programme.

Organising Committee

The 10th European ILERA Conference is organized by a consortium of universities in the Netherlands which are home to research groups studying labour and employment relations, in collaboration with the Dutch Labour and Employment Relations Association (DLERA). The organizing committee consists of:

Theme

Over the last two decades employment and labour relations in Europe have undergone important changes. Manufacturing employment is decreasing and various types of service employment are rising, together with female participation levels. The standard employment relationship is losing its dominant position with the growing use of flexible and part-time contracts, temporary agency work and (dependent) self-employment. Segmentation between stronger and weaker groups is increasing. Social solidarity is under pressure in many countries as a consequence of the increasing diversity of populations and of the labour force. Collective bargaining is decentralizing but there are also attempts to transnationalise bargaining within multinationals or within certain sectors. Trade unions are slowly losing membership and power but worker involvement in social innovation is wanted more than ever. The role of the EU is getting more important and new forms of governance are being experimented with. Change is accelerating as a result of the crisis and austerity is leading to profound restructuring of the public sector, affecting employment conditions and service provision.

Within this context, we want to foster a reflection and debate on the future of employment relations and new forms of solidarity. Such question include: What can or should employment relations look like in the future? What is the future of the public sector? Can or should growing segmentation and polarization be countered? What new types of governance support collaborative efforts to tackle today’s collective problems? What new types of solidarity can we foresee between group of workers or workers in different countries? What new types of cooperation or conflict can we foresee between workers and employers? The programme will be organized around 5 track themes (click here for the full description of the tracks):

Track 1:

Industrial relations actors in a changing labour market

Track 2:

Europeanisation of social and employment policies

Track 3:

Public sector restructuring: consequences for employment relations and public services

Track 4:

New forms of regulation and governance

Track 5:

HRM and Social Innovation

* Note:
With thanks to the Amsterdam Tourist and Congress Bureau who provided the footage of Amsterdam, Soundtaxi for the music and Daan Janssen for the editing and the footage of the University of Amsterdam.